Terry Collins said Jenrry Mejia is being viewed as a starting pitcher right now.

“At this particular moment, because of the year he spent hurt, and what we saw last year with his success as a starter as opposed to a reliever, he’s going to start,” Collins said. Is it going to be here? As of now with our staff, probably not. But he’s in the top seven.”

Collins didn’t know whether or not Mejia could come up before Zack Wheeler, in the event the Mets need an arm for the rotation.

“That’s a tough one to answer. I have no idea. A lot will be determined on how they throw this spring,” Collins said.

Michael Baron, Contributor

The Mets need to see what they have in Mejia. And, regardless of how he profiles in the future, Mejia needs to pitch in the role he feels most comfortable. He also needs to pitch in that determined role, whether it’s at Double-A, Triple-A, or in the big leagues. The Mets can’t jerk him around anymore and use him to fill gaps and needs.

I often wonder how he has been affected by this fluctuating role he’s been in as well as not pitching that much over the last couple of years. I am concerned that between the injury and the lack of consistency in his development might keep Mejia from evolving into the pitcher they want him to ultimately become.